A year without TV

Last year at this time I became very disappointed with the current state of television. I find it idiotic how network’s run shows into the ground just because the ratings are high. I find that TV shows today are full of lackluster and sensationalism.

I refuse to watch American Idol no matter how many people said how great it was. I decided that the last episode I would ever watch was the one when Kelly Clarkson won ­– You know, the first season.

Around the same time last year I embarked on a new journey into the land of Twitter. You may laugh but I have read some of the most exquisite articles on there and have met some amazing people. I think of Twitter as a public forum for A la Carte news.

 I follow things like art, media and a church media director in the local area. I love being updated on the latest from pastors like Mark Driscoll and John Piper and finding things on niche subjects like church media. Which is unmistakably hard to find elsewhere.

I’ve also become more of a bookworm or I guess you would call it magazine worm or magazine bug… or whatever. I like riding my bike to the library and gazing through their endless supply of magazines and books. I learned that I’m a connoisseur of entrepreneur startups. I have been reading articles from the likes of Forbes, The INC and Harvard Business Journal.

A year has gone by and I haven’t missed TV. The only time I saw it was maybe a few glances in a sports bar or when my roommates watch it. I also never got into web TV if your wondering, I have only been to Hulu once and I don’t subscribe to Netflix. I didn’t play games either, guess it was a year without games too. I went to the theatres once but it was for a local film festival showing local videos. I try to restrict my movie watching to Documentaries, Art House, Christian and educational/tutorial movies. 

I’m actually glad I stopped watching TV. I’ve spent more time in the word and reading in general without it. I don’t know how people make time for shows like Lost and 24 that have indefinite seasons. It was an experience and now I’m ready to make it year two.